Free Republic

What gorgeous freedom looks like. Rifqa made it. She's free. The case of Rifqa Bary resonated nationally at a time of tense Muslim-Christian relations. One of Rifqa's primary supporters is a blogger who a year later led a campaign against the development of an Islamic center in New York City near ground zero. AP [Christian should come before Muslim, just sayin'] And they can't bring themselves to write my name -- bloody cowards.Despite intense pressure from the Islamic supremacist machine, charges will not be filed against those righteous souls who helped Rifqa Bary escape her devout Muslim household after...

The Church of Sweden has advised pastors to avoid christening asylum seekers that have converted to Christianity due to the risk of reprisals in the case of repatriation, reported news agency TT. One of the reasons for the recommendation is because it can cause danger and increase risks if a person who has converted to Christianity is later sent back to their home country. Another reason is that the motive for the christening can be questioned by some who suggest that asylum seekers convert to Christianity to increase their chances of staying in Sweden. The issue is being addressed in...

No. 257, November, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 11., pp. 124-125. The last fourteen chapters (35-48) of Ezekiel contains such clear and concise prophecies concerning the restoration, conflicts, conversion, and establishment of Israel in their own land, on their own soil, that, were there no other testimony in the Word (and we have produced abundance), we venture to assert that no one, except by the most flagrant system of spiritualization, could deny that such restoration either had taken place, or must be relegated to the future. And that it is to the future we must look for the fulfillment is certain,...

No. 256, October, 1915, Vol. XXI, No. 10 VII. THE TESTIMONY OF JOEL. We come now in chronological order to the Book of the prophet Joel, which we regard as one continuous prophecy, and claim the entire prophecy as a prediction of events to be accomplished after a coming restoration of the Jews. Joel's prophecy is undated. It seems clear, however, that as Hosea was appointed prophet especially for the ten tribes of Israel, so Joel exercised that sacred office for Judah and Benjamin. The unity of the book as a whole is so evident that there is no need...

No. 255, September, 1915, Vol. XXI. No. 9, pp. 104-106 VI. THE TESTIMONY OF DANIEL THE PROPHET. Although the Book of Daniel does not mention the Restoration, nor directly refer to the Conversion of Israel, it is our privilege to glance at certain passages in that book, as they tell us of occurrences which will take place between those two events. It also brings to our notice a personage who shall be instrumental in bringing those occurrences to pass. We have reference again and again to some Great One who shall rule with universal sway, and shall tread down and...

No. 253, July, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 7., pp. 74-76 V. THE TESTIMONY OF JEREMIAH (continued). Let us now turn to some passages in chapters 30-33, taking chapter 33 first, as this has something in common with chapter 23, which we examined in the preceding article. Again we have "the Branch" and "the LORD our RIGHTEOUSNESS" referred to. "In those days, and at that time (i.e., the time at which Jehovah will perform the good things promised unto the house of Israel and under the house of Judah, the whole twelve tribes (v. 14), will I cause the BRANCH (Tsemach)...

No. 252, June, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 6., pp. 63-65 IV. THE TESTIMONY OF MICAH (continued). But not only does Micah tell us of the events and happenings connected with the restoration and conversion of Israel, and the righteous rule of Messiah; he also takes us still further, and, if the interpretation of vv. 7, 8, following those in chapter 5, which we considered in our last article, be correct, gives us a glimpse of what that people shall become, and how they shall be regarded among the nations of the world, when the Lord shall have dealt graciously with...

No. 251, May, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 5., pp. 51-53 III. THE TESTIMONY OF ISAIAH (continued). We concluded our last paper with Isaiah's description of the overthrow of Israel's enemies. But what of Israel? We have seen and shall further see that deliverance from their oppressors by the interposition of Messiah ensures blessings, temporal and spiritual, and these blessings flow from their reception of Messiah as their Hope and Salvation. So in the passages here considered. 1. There shall be peaceful occupation of Jerusalem. "For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: He will...

No. 251, May, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 5., pp. 51-53 III. THE TESTIMONY OF ISAIAH (continued). We concluded our last paper with Isaiah's description of the overthrow of Israel's enemies. But what of Israel? We have seen and shall further see that deliverance from their oppressors by the interposition of Messiah ensures blessings, temporal and spiritual, and these blessings flow from their reception of Messiah as their Hope and Salvation. So in the passages here considered. 1. There shall be peaceful occupation of Jerusalem. "For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: He will...

No. 250, April, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 4., pp. 39-40. III. THE TESTIMONY OF ISAIAH (continued.) In our last article we saw very plainly how Jehovah would "assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth" (Isa. 11.12). Also verse 11 tells us that the LORD will "recover the remnant of His people . . . from Assyria and from Egypt." We follow the same line of thought in chap. 27.12, 13. "It shall come to pass in that day the LORD shall beat off from the channel of the...

No. 249, March, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 3, pp. 29-31. II. THE TESTIMONY OF HOSEA (continued). Finally, let us glance at Hosea 1.10, 11. Here, after stating that Israel is not His people, God promises a future great increase of the nation, "yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea," in which we see a direct reference to the natural seed, for it will be remembered that the Almighty promised Abraham a double line of descendents, a natural seed is represented by the sand of the sea, and a spiritual seed represented...

By Rev. Geo. A.B. Chamberlain, M.A. Vicar of Hook, Yorks. No. 248, February, 1915, Vol. XXI., No. 2, pp. 19-22. So many are the "divers portions" in which "God in time past spake unto the fathers by the prophets" with regard to the future Restoration and Conversion of their descendents, that it is somewhat perplexing to know exactly where to begin our exploration of this rich treasure-house of God's revelation. Perhaps the best course would be to take the prophets in their chronological order, and see what each has to tell us in connection the future dealings with the chosen...

By Rev. Geo. A.B. Chamberlain, M.A. Vicar of Hook, Yorks. As found in Things to Come, A Journal fo Biblical Literature, No. 247, January, 1915, Vol. XXI. No. 1., pp.8-10 FORWARD It is a matter of congratulation that in dealing with the subject such as the above, there is no need, as far as the readers of Things to Come are concerned, to dwell upon the great importance of the prophetic Scriptures. In fact, no one would spend valuable time reading that excellent paper, did they not attach some importance, however little, to the prophetic parts of Holy Writ; where...

From Rescued to Rescuer      By Betsy DoaneBetsy Doane, "From Rescued to Rescuer", Ensign, Feb. 2011, 60–61  My life was a downward spiral until I met a man who claimed to have the solution to my troubles.   One evening in 1978, I was at the Logan Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, waiting for some friends to arrive. A man struck up a conversation with me, and we talked a little about our lives. I told him I had returned three months earlier from a trip to Central America.I had gone to escape the painful realities of my life, I told him. Nine...

...Pope Benedict reminds us all that the Church "exists to evangelize" with an urgency reminiscent of the Saint whose feast we celebrated the day this message was made public. He writes,"This task has lost none of its urgency.We cannot rest easy at the thought that, after two thousand, there are people who still do not know Christ, who have not yet heard His message of salvation." Here he is speaking of the missionary mandate of the Church "ad gentes" , to the Nations. The Church has always taught that every single human being on the face of the earth has...

...'For a son of God each day should be an opportunity for renewal, knowing for sure that with the help of grace he will reach the end of the road, which is Love. That is why if you begin and begin again, you are doing well...' (The Forge, 344) The London Daily Mail recently ran an article entitled "New Year's resolutions 'barely last longer than a week'" However, the fact remains, we all make them. The experience is nearly universal. Some Nations use different calendars, but the passing of one year to another is marked by a deliberate period of...

A high-profile conversion begs the question: what are these women seeking that they could not find under liberty? Very recently Tony Blair’s sister-in-law, journalist Lauren Booth, embraced the faith after what she described as a “holy experience” in Iran. Based on what Ayaan Hirsi Ali has described as the brutal, totalistic character of Islam, one is obliged to ask why any modern career woman would opt for conversion to the Muslim religion. After all, as so many autobiographies of Muslim women note, the religion bans anything that is fun (“haram,” or forbidden). No chewing of gum, no bicycle riding, no...

The trial of an Afghan convert to Christianity was delayed from Sunday to possibly as early as sometime this week, depending on when officers figure out how to judge the case. Said Musa, 45, an amputee, is understood to be in prison for his Christian faith, although he has no legal representation and does not know the charges against him. Under the Afghan constitution, there is no law that bans religious conversion. As a result, officers are currently deciding if Musa should be tried under sharia law. Sharia or Islamic law says a convert from Islam can be punished by...

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A lawyer for a runaway Christian convert from Ohio who was also an illegal immigrant says the 18-year-old woman has gained permanent residency in the United States. Kort Gatterdam, a lawyer for Rifqa Bary, said Tuesday the news means Bary can now start applying for a driver's license, Medicaid coverage and college scholarships. Gatterdam says Bary, a native of Sri Lanka, received her permanent residency card last week and can apply for citizenship in five years.

Question: My sister was baptized and has since married and had a child. My mother claims the child is Jewish, but how could that be? If Judaism is a religion, if someone leaves it, she's no longer Jewish, right? Response: Logically, I would have to agree with you. If Judaism is a religion, then someone who doesn't believe in the religion should be no longer Jewish. The reality, however, is that it doesn't work that way. Throughout the Tanach, we find Jews breaking every facet of their covenant with G‑d, joining and forming all sorts of idolatrous cults and heathen...